Behaviour This species is known to undertake considerable nomadic movements in response to changing water levels (many of its favoured sites are ephemeral) (Scott and Rose 1996), and it is an irregular and opportunistic breeder, varying its time of breeding with rainfall (Brown et al. 1982). Throughout both breeding and non-breeding seasons the species is dispersed in single pairs or small flocks of 3-7 birds; large flocks in the moulting season are recorded rarely, when some gatherings can be as large as 2,000 strong (Madge and Burn 1988, Kear 2005b). The species is diurnal, with most of its activity occurring between 0700-0900 (Hockey et al. 2005) and 1300-1700 (Brown et al. 1982), although occasionally the species may also forage at night (Hockey et al. 2005). Habitat This species frequents shallow saline lakes, seasonal and permanent brackish or saline pools and vleis, rivers, seasonally flooded wetlands, farm dams, state reservoirs, coastal shorelines, estuaries, lagoons, tidal mudflats and wastewater treatment pools (Johnsgard 1978, Madge and Burn 1988, Dowsett 2004, Hockey et al. 2005, Kear 2005b). In the East African Rift Valley it occurs from the lowlands up to 1,700 m (Scott and Rose 1996) on small, sheltered alkaline and brackish waters with little or no shoreline vegetation, moving to permanent alkaline waters when nearby temporal pools become dry (Baker 2003). In the Western Cape of South Africa this species moves to deep, open waters on which to moult, and prefers to breed on bare and grassy pans (Hockey et al. 2005). Diet It has an omnivorous diet, feeding on the stems, leaves and seeds of pondweeds, as well as aquatic insects, crustaceans and tadpoles (Johnsgard 1978). Breeding site Females prefer to locate nests on islands where possible, although nest sites can be some distance from the water. The nest itself is a hollow scrape in the ground, well concealed amongst small trees, thorny bushes or aquatic vegetation (Johnsgard 1978, del Hoyo et al. 1992, Kear 2005b).